Jealousy Is The Sister Of Love
by sonamyfanfiction
Summary: Sonic tried hard not to think about the friends he'd lost over the years, but every now and then the memories would seep in. So when he stumbles across and old friend, not to mention old love, he couldn't be happier. However, the arrival of old friends brings out the green-eyed beast in a certain fuchsia hedgehog.
1. Boredom

**Attention all FFN ladies and jellybeans!**

 **Here is my newest piece! I hope you all enjoy it, here's the first chapter! You'll see the mention and a few sentences from an actual fantasy novel I'm reading right now and it seemed fitting to put it in! Obviously I own nothing but the plot, everything else belongs to SEGA bar the mention of said book, which you will see soon! Enjoy!**

 **Ciao! xx**

* * *

'I can't remember the last time I was so, damn bored.' Silver groaned, slumped over a bean bag.

'Comments like that make me fear you boys are going to stir trouble.' Cream winced a little as she looked up from the checkers board.

'Don't worry, Cream, even Silver isn't that stupid.' Rouge said as she shot the grey hedgehog a wink.

'I'd beg to differ.' Blaze smirked as she flicked through a magazine.

It had been weeks since the gang had even seen or heard a mere clue of Eggman and his sidebots, and even the girls were getting tired of not being thrown into battle. Cream and Manic had been versing each other in checkers for so long they had lost count of how many times the young rabbit won. Tails was tinkering away on the Tornado, Cosmo seated by him to pass along tools as she made flowers in the air with her powers.

Silver was still draped over a bean bag, Shadow and Knuckles slowly drifting off into an afternoon snooze on the other bean bags. Blaze was still flicking through a gossip magazine, proving just how bored she really was. Rouge was adjusting the curlers in Sonia's hair, now that they had time to do some pampering while Tikal was reading some ancient manuscripts next to Sonia on the ground.

Sonic was leaning up against the arm rest on the couch, throwing one of those balls made of rubber bands in the air before catching it again. Amy was at the other end of the lounge, legs curled up and pulling her knees in as she read a fiction novel intently. The blue blur sat up a little, causing him to bring Amy into his view. He smirked a little before throwing the ball at her head.

'Hey!' Amy startled before rubbing her head.

'What?' Sonic questioned, putting on a fake innocence before cracking a smile.

Amy giggled inwardly before throwing the ball back in his direction, only for him to catch it. The fuchsia hedgehog rolled her eyes before burying her nose back into her book. Sonic tilted his head a little before cautiously shuffling closer so he could see what she was reading. _Destined_ by _Aprilynne Pike._ Sonic couldn't help but begin to read over her shoulder…

 _When his lips fell on her neck, her cheeks, and dotted her eyelids, she didn't pull away. Even when his mouth found hers, frantic and delving, she returned the kiss with the same fire and passion. It wasn't until-_

'Oi, Faker?' Shadow said a little louder for the third time.

'Hmm?' Sonic questioned as he snapped back to reality, not having time to process whatever Amy was reading.

'I asked if you had seen my spanner.' Tails called out from under the Tornado.

'Pfft, doubt it. Sonic wouldn't know- dammit!' manic cut himself off after Cream won yet again.

'Give it up, Manic.' Tikal said in a familiar monotone, still buried in her manuscripts.

'Whatcha' thinkin' so hard about, Sonic?' Knuckles chuckled, lifting his head up to see his friend.

'I think the nearest chilli dog stand is not far down the road.' Cosmo piped up, causing everyone to giggle.

'Trust me, he knows. He's been- ouch!' Sonia squealed in the middle of her sentence as Rouge pulled a roller out of her hair firmly.

Amy finally came into the conversation as she finished her chapter, causing her to look up and see Sonic hovering over her shoulder out of the corner of her eye. She felt her body tense up at the realisation of his close proximity, plus sudden registering his warm breath on her neck. As she turned to face him, he'd already leapt of the couch and onto his feet in one swift movement.

'Yep, yeah. Chilli dogs, so I'm off. Bye!' Sonic stammered through a blush before speeding out the door.

The gang shrugged it off before returning to… doing nothing. Amy watched Sonic rush out the door, right up until the blue streak behind him faded away before returning to her book. She skimmed over the page until she found her place, and suddenly realised why Sonic was looking over her shoulder before turning a little jumpy. She quickly began to blush, putting a certain echidna's fur to shame.

She began to giggle under her breath, wondering what Sonic was thinking right now…

.

Over the hills, around the bends and all around Knothole a blue streak could be seen dashing by as Sonic made his afternoon run. He'd test himself, running faster and faster on the flat ground until got to jump and duck around the trees and rocks throughout the forest. He chuckled to himself a little as he felt the warm air whip through his quill and fly by him.

He ran out of the forest, headed towards the ocean. He sped up a cliff that overlooked the water, skidding to a halt so he could watch the sun beginning to meet the ocean's horizon. He subconsciously let out a goofy smile before taking a seat on the plush, green grass. He propped himself up with his hands behind his back before stretching out to pick a flower, bringing it to his nose.

It took him a few seconds to take in the colour of the flower, a beautifully vibrant pink. He actually tried to supress a smile, but he couldn't as he thought of a certain hedgehog of the same colour. It lead him to thinking about when they were sitting on the couch together earlier, her smile when he threw the ball at her before she looked at him. It made him feel just twelve years old again, the immaturity in it, but it suddenly felt fun again.

It led him to think about what Amy was reading… he couldn't remember the name, but he could remember the few sentences he read before being snapped back to reality. The couple sounded so in love, so into each other, whether they were meant to or not. It sounded as though they wanted each other but, maybe shouldn't. He couldn't stop his mind from transferring the characters into him and… well, Amy.

He blushed just at the thought before tossing the flower away and getting to his feet. He quite literally shook away his thoughts as he dusted invisible dirt away from his fur. He was about to speed away again, the same way he did every day before his communicator sounded, lucky for him really. He brought his wrist up and clicked to answer it, for tails to show up on the screen.

'Hey bro, where are you?' Tails asked with his usual, friendly smile.

'Just stopped for a minute, thinking I'll head back around now. I'd say there's about another hour until sunset.' Sonic nodded.

'Sweet, I want to show you an upgrade to the Tornado!'

'See you soon, pal.' Sonic chuckled before hanging up.

The cobalt hero took another look out at the ocean, watching the waves crash upon themselves and making their way towards the rocks at the base of the cliff. He smirked before dashing back home, headed back towards the forest. He sped down the cliff and ran across the beach, leaving a blue trail mixed with sand behind him as he neared the forest.

As he came to the edge of the forest, about to whip through and continue on home, he swore he could hear coughing and spluttering before painful groans. He skid to a halt and looked around silently, waiting and listening for the sounds to present themselves again. Heavy breathing and panting before another painful groan sounded not far to his right, causing him to dash off and look around.

'Hello?' Sonic cocked a cautious brow as he walked around.

'H-Help.' A weak voice sounded before a cough.

'Hello?' Where are you?' Sonic called out louder before picking up the pace to find the source. 


	2. Reunion

'Are you ok?' Sonic questioned quietly as he saw what appeared to be a female chipmunk double over on the ground.

'H-He found-' The girl cut herself off as she looked into the eyes of her saviour, recognising them immediately, as did Sonic.

'S-Sally? Is… Is that you?' Sonic stammered.

'Oh my, Chaos. Sonic! It's you!' She exclaimed as she pushed away her pain and leapt to her feet.

The shock passed them both by, being replaced with the immense joy of their reunion. Sally leapt into his arms and pulled him close, laughing happily as tears trickled down her cheeks. Sonic smiled as he squeezed her to his chest, unable to believe this was really happening. He hadn't seen her in… Chaos only knows how many years. She had changed, more mature and beautiful.

'I can't believe it's really you! How did- where are-' Sally cut herself off as she pulled back to look into his eyes.

'Are you- where have-' Sonic cut himself off, neither able to finish a sentence.

'I can't believe of all people to stumble across me, it's you! I've always been able to count on you though.' Sally giggled.

'Are you out here all alone? What happened?!'

'Come with me! I'll show you where we've been.' Sally smiled as she tugged Sonic along, still pushing away the pain of her whole body.

'We?' Sonic asked excitedly.

'They won't believe it either!'

Sally began to run awkwardly from her injuries, pulling Sonic along behind her until he scooped her up and dashed out of the forest, following Sally's direction until they came across a huge tree. Sonic set her down as he looked up, trying to find something to look at other than the thick branches covered in beautiful, big leaves. Sally exchanged a glance with him, smiling before they made their way up.

They climbed up and through the thick scrub of the leaves until they came to a wooden balcony that wrapped around the stump of the tree. It lead into an opening inside the tree, revealing a huge room with all the basics, easily disguised by the greenery. Sally took his hand and lead him forward before calling out that she was back, awaiting a response.

'Hey, Sugar, how did you-' A beautiful rabbit stepped out, cutting herself off when she saw the cobalt hedgehog.

'Bunnie Rabbot?! No way!' Sonic smiled widely as he dashed up and embraced his old friend.

'Oh, Sonic! It's been so long, Sugarhog!' Bunnie squealed.

'Bunnie, dear, 'ave you seen-' Another familiar, French voice cut himself off when he saw the blue hedgehog.

'Antoine? Chaos, it's been a while, Ant!' Sonic chuckled at his nickname for the posh coyote as he gave him a firm handshake.

'Sonic Hedgehog, how long it's been.' Antoine smiled.

'What are you doing with yourself, Ant? Found a girl who can deal with you?' Sonic smirked.

'He sure has, Sugarhog.' Bunnie blushed as she wrapped her arms around the coyote.

'Sonic, meet Bunnie _D'Coolette_.' Antoine announced proudly as he emphasised his last name on Bunnie's first.

'Bunnie and Antoine have been married little over a year now, Sonic.' Sally smiled as she walked up next to him.

'Wow. I've missed a lot.' Sonic chuckled, taking it all in.

'It has been a long time, has it not?' Antoine smile a little in Bunnie's embrace, his French accent thick.

'Where's Rotor? Have you seen Uncle Chuck?!' Sonic exclaimed, the questions flew out of his mouth faster than he could think.

'Sorry, Sugar. They've been gone a long time now.' Bunnie sighed.

'Not _gone_ gone. Well, at least we don't think-'

'We're sorry, Sonic. We just don't know, but we're sure they'll come back some day.' Sally cut Antoine off.

Sonic's gaze dropped to his shoes briefly, thinking back to when he'd really own known Sally and the others. How he missed his Uncle, he hadn't seen him for so long, much less Sally or Bunnie and Antoine. They'd all been Freedom Fighters for so long, along with Tails, and one day… he couldn't remember anymore… they just drifted away, lost each other. Sonic and Tails lost them, and found the others, but they always thought about the Freedom Fighters.

He was going to suggest they send out search parties for Rotor, another original Fighter, and his Uncle, only to quickly figure that's probably what Sally and the others had been doing all this time. He let out a sigh before quickly looking back up with his usual smile, remembering this was a happy time, a reunion of old friends. He loosely wrapped an arm around Sally's shoulders and gave her a direct smile.

'Well, I think you guys should come home with me for a bit. I'm sure everyone would love to see you, especially Tails.' Sonic smiled.

'Oh, my little baby fox! I can't wait to see him, he must be so grown up now!' Bunnie exclaimed excitedly.

'You have no idea.'

'Are you sure this is ok, Sonic?' Antoine cocked a brow through a smile.

'Sure thing, Ant!'

'Then let's go! I can't wait!' Sally squealed.

.

For the first time in a long time, or maybe ever, Sonic gladly took his time getting back home. The four made their way down the tree and walked the entire way back to Sonic and Tails' humble abode, catching up with one another and talking over the missing years. It was sun down by the time they arrived, able to see the home down the path. They continued walking a little further before Sally subconsciously stopped, causing Sonic to turn back and look at her, Bunnie and Antoine behind her.

'What's wrong?' Sonic cocked a brow.

'I'm, well… a little nervous?' Sally stated, feeling a little silly.

'I'm glad it's not just me, girl.' Bunnie added.

'Don't be ridiculous! They're going to be super excited to see you!' Sonic insisted.

'My dear, I am sure there is no need to be nervous.' Antoine smiled, loosely wrapping his arm around his wife's waist.

'Come on, let's go.' Sonic smirked, taking Sally's hand in his and pulling her along.

It didn't take much more than that for Sally to let the cobalt hero drag her down the road, Bunnie and Antoine hot on their heels. Although, she had always trusted Sonic regardless of the situation. They walked around to where the garage door was open, light streaming out and sounds of laughter and talking filling the night air. Sonic turned back and flashed his three old friends a smile before they continued to walk through the garage door.

'Hey! Look who I found today!' Sonic exclaimed excitedly.

The laughter and chat slowly died down as everyone turned their heads towards the opening of the room to reveal Sonic and three other faces that most of them hadn't met before, or at least not very well. Sonic and Sally's eyes immediately found Tails, who they were almost certain had stopped breathing before he got to his feet and slowly made his way towards the three familiar faces.

'A-Aunt…' Tails trailed off as he reached out to touch Sally before retracting his hand. 'No, no way.'

'You're so grown up!' Sally whispered, forcing back tears.

'Oh, Sugar, look at you!' Bunnie cried before scooping Tails up in her arms, to which Tails accepted.

'Aunt Bunnie?! Well, Bunnie! Sally! Antoine! Is it really you?!' Tails exclaimed as he pulled back and looked at them from Bunnie's arms.

'Tails! It is a good to see you!' Antoine exclaimed.

'Holy hell, Sally? Is that you?' Sonia whispered as she walked up to the chipmunk, Manic not far behind her.

'Sonia! My Chaos, it's been so long.' Sally cried before pulling the magenta hedgehog into her arms as Manic shook Antoine's hand.

'How- Sonic-' Knuckles continued to cut himself off as he walked up to Bunnie before she pulled him into a tight embrace. 'How the hell did you find them, Sonic?!'

'Ah, you know me. Always running into people.' Sonic shrugged.

Everyone chuckled as Manic pushed his little brother for the story, slowly introducing the rest of the gang to the new comers. Manic and Sonia hadn't seen any of them since before even Sonic, Tails or Knuckles, them having lost contact not long before hand. Tails was still being squeezed to death by Bunnie as Knuckles embraced Sally. Sonic took it all in, still telling the story and filling them all in on what they'd missed.

He hadn't noticed it yet, but the only person missing from the gang was a certain fuchsia hedgehog who was upstairs when they walked in. Amy finally heard the commotion coming from the garage, causing her to make her way downstairs, walking in to see Sally almost immediately now standing by Sonic and talking to Cream.

'Sally?' Amy said breathlessly before she could stop herself, causing everyone to turn and face her.

'Rosy?' Sally smiled as she slowly walked towards her.

'It's Amy.' Amy said, almost harshly.

'Oh, I'm sorry. Wow, you're so grown up! You look beautiful!' Sally smiled as she pulled the bubble gum hedgehog in for a warm embrace, to which she politely accepted.

Amy sub-consciously pat Sally on the back, her words becoming a blur in her ears as her thoughts drifted away from the scene. She looked around the room, able to see the gang still fawning over the other two that had come with Sally, the two Amy didn't recognise. Was this really happening? Was Sally really here? And with Sonic? She could almost swear this was one of her worst nightmares, but Sally's grip on her was definitely real.

Sally loosened her grip enough to pull Amy out so she could look at her face, still talking with that bright smile on her face. She really was the epitome of a princess, and Amy loathed that. All the conversations around her were still a blur as she smiled, pretending she was listening to what Sally was saying. Until she could swear the brunette chipmunk asked her a question…

'Wh- Sorry?' Amy stammered a little.

'I asked when you changed your outfit. It looks great!' Sally repeated with a compliment.

Amy stammered a little more before trying to answer Sally's question before more catching up conversation, bringing more of the gang into it so the fuchsia hedgehog didn't have to just focus on the nightmare in front of her. She looked around the garage a little more, trying to catch Sonic's eye. When she did, she could have sworn he was looking at her with that cute, goofy smile of his.

She let out a sigh of relief as she smiled sub-consciously, watching him as he melted her heart again. She was quick to realise he wasn't really looking at her after she smiled at him, instead he was smiling past her. She turned her head a little to realise Princess Sally Acorn was now standing behind her talking to Rouge, where Sonic's goofy smile was aimed at…

She could swear she actually felt her heart shatter. Within one afternoon, one of her most feared nightmares… became a cruel, cold reality.


	3. An Explanation Through The Tension

**Wassup, everyone?**

 **How are we all liking this piece so far? Thanks everyone for your kind reviews! Here's chapter 3! Enjoy!  
** **Oh, and for all those who are wondering... OF COURSE IT'S A SONAMY STORY! Trust me, you'll never see me ship another couple with Sonic or with Amy separate!**

 **Ciao! xx**

* * *

As night fell over Sonic and Tails' house, a few of the girls got to cooking a big dinner in the kitchen while the others were busy still talking and laughing in the lounge room. Normally, Amy would offer to help out but happily stay back in the living room with the others if she wasn't needed but tonight, she was in first one over the stove. Cream and Tikal were helping her out, trying to make conversation, but Amy clearly couldn't keep even the simplest of chat going.

As she absent mindedly got to stirring a pot over the stove, she tried harder and harder to block out the laughter and happy voices in the living room, but as her brain began to fry it got harder and harder to block out the Princess. Don't get mixed up, Amy didn't dislike Sally, not at all. She was kind, sweet, brave, smart, courageous and beautiful. Therefore, while they were friends, she was still Amy's biggest threat. As her thoughts got away from her, the chilli she continued to stir began to bubble before spitting out at her, burning her arms and muzzle.

'Ah! Shit.' Amy screeched before cursing under her breath.

'You ok, Amy?' Tikal asked as she looked over her shoulder.

'Hmm? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just lost focus.'

'You look awful tired. Maybe you should go and sit down? Tikal and I have got this.' Cream suggested.

'No,' Amy answered almost too quickly. 'Uh, I'm fine. I'm nearly finished anyway.'

Tikal and Cream exchanged a quick glance after Amy turned back to face the stove before shrugging it off and taking their preparations over the others. The fuchsia hedgehog quickly took out the chilli and into a bowl before taking it over to the table reluctantly, not sure she really wanted to deal with more of it tonight. When she got to the lounge, she took a seat in the only spare space there was… right by Sonic.

For the first time she'd noticed since they got here, her cobalt hero wasn't talking to Sally now, instead to Antoine and Bunnie, which made her feel a little relieved. She subtly looked around to find Sally talking to both Rouge and Sonia, appearing to be getting along really well. She knew it was a split second paranoia, but she couldn't block out the thought of Sally taking away her friends too. She quickly shook away the thoughts before suddenly hearing her name mentioned.

'Sorry?' Amy questioned in the direction of the voice.

'You ok there, Ames?' Sonic asked her quietly, now that Bunnie and Antoine were in conversation with Tails.

'Uh, yeah! Of course, why?' Amy lied through a smile.

'No reason, just checking.' Sonic shrugged before winking through a smile, causing Amy to smile up at him.

 _'I haven't got anything to worry about. I haven't got anything to worry about… right?' Amy repeated in her mind._

'You guys sure never disappoint.' Manic mumbled through a mouthful of chilli dog.

'It scares me that I'm related to you.' Sonia looked at him with disgust.

'Maybe you're adopted?' Silver snickered.

'If anything, Manic is adopted.' Blaze giggled.

'That doesn't explain Sonic.' Sally cocked a brow through a smile in his direction causing everyone to laugh, except Amy who just smiled.

'Oh, now don't you listen to them, Sugarhogs. They wouldn't trade you in even if they could.' Bunnie insisted.

'How the hell did you land her, Antoine?' Tails chuckled, causing Knuckles and Shadow to smirk.

'Don't listen to him, honey. He's just jealous he hasn't landed Cosmo yet.' Rouge smiled at Antoine.

'Rouge!' Cosmo gasped as Tails blushed furiously.

'It is a so nice to see young Tails in lurve.' Antoine responded to Rouge, causing both Tails and Cosmo to burn red and bow their heads.

'So, anyway! How are those scrapes and bruises feeling, Aunty Sally?' Tails exclaimed, changing the conversation quickly.

'I'm just fine thanks, Tails. I think the worst of it when Sonic here found me was probably smoke inhalation and a little concussion.' Sally answered with a smile.

As Sally exchanged what could be mistaken as a flirtatious smile with the cobalt hero, all Amy could think was how quickly that moment of relief was shattered. Maybe she was the only one that considered Amy's expressions as flirty, and maybe she was paranoid, but she didn't want to take this too lightly. As Tails and Cosmo's blushes subsided, they got to asking Sally about what happened before Sonic found her.

'Are you sure you're not still hurt, Miss Sally?' Cream asked again.

'She's fine, deary, we've fixed her up all good.' Bunnie smiled brightly.

'I'd like to see Egghead give her more than a few cuts and bruises.' Manic smiled.

'So would I.' Amy mumbled, luckily only loud enough for Rouge to hear.

'I don't think I've ever seen Sal here get more than that. None of the Freedom Fighters! Well, except maybe Ant.' Sonic smirked.

'Hush now, Sonic.' Antoine huffed.

'So, what were you looking around his lair for anyway, Sally?' Shadow cocked a brow curiously.

'He's been flying back and forth around our hideout lately, and I wanted to see what he was up to. I got close enough to scope out the huge machine but something blew up, taking me with it, before I could see what it was doing.' The chipmunk sighed.

'How far away from the base did you get before Sonic here found you?' Blaze asked.

'Not far, I was pretty out of it. I hit my head, I think before coming to.'

'You know, if you start to feel worse, Cosmo and I have some great remedies to fix you up.' Tikal offered.

'Yeah, we'd be happy to help you out.' Cosmo added.

'Oh, no, I don't want to be any trouble.' Sally insisted.

'Don't be silly, Sally. You three are stay with us for a while anyway!' Tails told them.

 _'Oh, great.' Amy thought._

'It would certainly help us all out in getting closer to Eggman's base and snoop around.' Knuckles smiled deviously.

'Yes! Finally, back in action!' Silver cheered, causing Sally and Bunnie to giggle.

As Sally got to filling Silver in with the information she knew, answering as many of his questions as she could, Rouge and Sonia both caught sight of Amy still sitting on the couch by Sonic staring at her fingernails with a pissed and slightly sarcastic expression on her face. The two exchanged a quick glance with one another before turning back to the fuchsia hedgehog, knowing something was up and determined to find out.

'Alright, how about drinks? Sonia, Amy? Help me out.' Rouge said not-so-subtly as she walked towards the camera, the other two on her heel.

Sonia briskly made her way to the kitchen after Rouge, Amy following behind a little confused until they made it to the kitchen island. Rouge pulled out a few bottles of wine as Sonia pulled out a tray and wine glasses without a word, waiting for Amy to get close enough behind them. Once they placed everything down, they both stared at the fuchsia hedgehog simultaneously.

'What?' Amy cocked a brow.

'Could you be anymore jealous, girl?' Rouge smiled, firmness in her voice.

'Wh- I don't know what you're talking about?'

'Sweetie, if Sally wasn't so kind, she would have said something by now surely.' Sonia smirked a little as she got to pouring the drinks.

'What are you guys-'

'Amy, love you as we do, but you have to chill out!' Rouge cut her off.

'Sally has been here for a few hours. Sure, her and Sonic have had a thing but that was so long ago! We all know he's into you now and she isn't going to take that away from you.' Sonia added firmly, locking eyes with Amy.

'He's into me?' Amy questioned as her eyes shot up to look at the two.

'That's what you took from that?!' Rouge and Sonia exclaimed in a whisper.

'Look, I get what you're both saying, but it doesn't make me any less… nervous. Yeah, let's go with that.' Amy shrugged as she finished pouring the rest of the drinks.

'We're also saying is trying not to be so obvious.' Rouge looked at her with a smirk.

'Obvious? Me?' Amy gasped dramatically, only to receive two knowing glares.

'You're jealously is more obvious than Rouge actually wanting Knuckles.' Sonia nodded.

'What?!' Rouge snapped.

'Not now, Rouge!' Sonia insisted with a cheeky smiled as she took one of the trays of drinks over towards the others.

Rouge growled a little under her breath, Amy giving her a cheeky giggle before they picked up a tray each and followed Sonia over to the others. As they all got to passing out and taking drinks, Amy resumed her seat on the lounge next to Sonic, Rouge and Sonia taking even more notice. Sally and Sonic had resumed conversation across from each, both with wide grins plastered across their muzzles.

Amy exchanged a subtly glance with Rouge and Sonia who were now seated by Blaze, the lavender feline quickly catching on. They looked at her knowingly, trying to reassure her that everything was fine, but something told them the fuchsia hedgehog misread them… either that or chose to ignore them. She smiled a little before taking a sip of her wine and scooting closer to her hero, joining in on their conversation.

'So, Sonic, have you started doing anything else with your time other than being the hero of Mobius?' Sally smirked a little.

 _'Oh, please…' Amy thought, suppressing an eye roll._

'Well, you know me, Sal. Being a hero takes up a lot of time and energy! Although, always important to make time for pals.' Sonic chuckled as he pulled Amy in and shook her in a hug, causing her to give out a fake laugh.

'How about you, Amy? What are you interested in when you're not being a hero?' Sally smiled at her.

'Oh? Well,' Amy began with a fake smile and a little over-dramatically, 'I like to keep up to scratch with my skills, especially with my very, large Piko Piko Hammer.'

'Oh, you still have that?' Sally smiled, causing Amy to fume internally.

'Other than that, much like Sonic, spending time with him and our friends.' Amy ignored Sally's comment, continuing on as she laced her arm around Sonic's back and placed her other hand on his chest.

'I see.' Sally said, her large grin fading in the slightest.

By now, Sally had caught on that something was definitely going on with Amy and she was sure it had something to do with her and more than likely Sonic. The brunette chipmunk tried not to fuel the fire, despite the fact how much she wanted to, but was almost sure Amy would do that on her own. Now, it was just the two girls who had picked up on the tension… Everyone else made small talk, with one eye and one ear on their intense stare… 


	4. Awkward Tension

As the sun rose, so did the team. Slowly but surely, everyone woke up in their own homes and got to getting ready for the day. They all planned to make their way to the garage later in the day, ready to do some research on Eggman's base and whatever he was concocting this time around. Lucky for Amy, she had a few hours to kill before they had to be there, so she called a few of the girls around for a helping hand…

'Come on, Amy. It's totally not necessary.' Blaze smiled as she sipped on her coffee.

'Maybe not, but I'm willing to give it a go.' Amy shrugged as she sat down at her coffee table.

'Well, you came to the right girls, kiddo.' Sonia giggled.

'Amen to that, but are you sure about it? I mean, it's not like he'll be the only one to notice. Knowing the others, they'll say something at the most inappropriate of times.' Rouge said as she poured herself a tea.

'Look, if I'm lucky, I'm just totally paranoid and this will all be for nothing. What's the harm though, right?' Amy smiled as she placed her coffee down on the table, locking eyes with her friends.

'You know we're going to help you regardless, Amy.' Blaze assured her.

'Just be prepared for Manic or one of the others to say something stupid.' Sonia added.

'Got it.' Amy nodded.

'Let's get started then!' Rouge exclaimed.

Rouge got to her feet, cup of tea in hand and headed straight for Amy's bedroom, the fuchsia hedgehog hot on her heels while Sonia and Blaze made their way toward her bathroom, pulling out all the possible products they may or may not need. Amy knew she didn't really need to do this, but she guessed there was no harm in it. The girls on the other hand, they just hoped it wouldn't fuel the fire…

.

By nine o'clock it was a warm, sunny morning in Knothole and everyone had made their way to the garage. Well, almost everyone. Amy and her helpers were almost there when the others were seated around the garage, having breakfast and bidding each other good morning. Rouge walked through the open garage door, Sonia and Blaze at her sides and Amy behind them, out of everyone's sights before anyone noticed them walk in.

'Good morning, everyone!' Rouge exclaimed cheerfully before taking a seat herself.

'About time, Bat.' Shadow huffed.

'We were busy.' Sonia stated simply.

'That's always your excuse, sis.' Manic rolled his eyes.

'What took you guys so-'

Sonic cut himself off when he caught sight of Amy, casually walking over to Bunnie and Silver to say good morning. He didn't exactly stop himself, but he could swear his eyes were bulging and his tongue was hanging out of his mouth. Amy wasn't wearing a headband today, allowing her short quills to stray about with a messiness he found attractive.

As he traced down her body, he noticed her entire new attire. Today she was wearing a cropped, off-the-shoulder T-Shirt with high waisted black tights, matched with knee high black boots with a small heel. She ran her fingers through her quills, brushing them off her face to reveal the little bit of make-up she was sporting this morning. Lip gloss to plump her lips and mascara to bring out her eyes.

 _'Woah…'_

'Hey! Lookin' good today, kiddo!' Silver exclaimed after bidding the bubble gum hedgehog good morning and drawing everyone's attention to her.

'Thanks, Silver! Just thought I'd mix it up today.' Amy shrugged innocently, causing a certain three girls to supress an eye roll.

'You're looking gorgeous, Sugar! How do you keep the men away?' Bunnie winked.

'Do not be giving her any ideas, Amy.' Antoine spit out a little too fast.

'I'll bet I can guess whose work that was.' Knuckles mumbled, causing Tails to chuckle.

'Oh, be quiet, Knuckles. She looks great!' Tikal nudged him.

'Hey guys! I found a-'

Sally cut herself off as she walked down the stairs and into the garage, catching sight of Amy… much like the night before when the tables were turned. No one really took much notice of the two girls staring at each other for a brief few seconds, although Sally did break the silence pretty fast after walking towards Amy with her usual cheery smile to bid her good morning.

'You look different today, Amy. I love your new look!' Sally complimented her.

'Thanks, it's not really new, just mixing it up today.' Amy insisted through a small smile.

'So, what were you saying, Sally?' Cosmo asked, quickly changing the subject to avoid the tension.

'Oh, right. I was doing some research and I think I've pinpointed the location of Dr. Eggman's base. I think we should go and check it out, scope out this new invention.'

'We need to deactivate the guard bots first. We don't want to get blown away like you did.' Amy spoke up quickly, causing the chipmunk to turn and look at her.

'Amy's right. I think I can do that from here. Hack into the system and shut it down before we head out.' Tails smiled as he began fidgeting on his computer.

'We're going to need to work out how far away we need to leave the Tornado too. We can have Eggman sending out more drones.' Cream insisted.

'Absolutely, Cream's right!' Sonic exclaimed, not taking his eyes off Amy.

'Then let's get to it!' Amy exclaimed cheerfully, her eyes locked with Sonic's.

.

As Tails quickly jumped on his computer, attempting to hack into Eggman's system, Sally and Sonia were by his sides to help him while Sonic, Shadow, Rouge and Amy began pulling out maps and working out how far they could take the Tornado. It didn't take more than that before Amy went back to being her normal self, bar her new outfit, feeling she had done what she set out to do.

She wouldn't admit it aloud, and she could work out exactly why, but she felt a little guilty rubbing her knew look in Sally's face. She knew she looked good, she could feel it, plus she had been reassured all morning. Not just that, it was as clear as day that it caught Sonic's eye, which is exactly what she wanted. So, why was there a niggling feeling eating at her?

 _Girl code, Amy._

She quickly shook off her uncertainty and got back to work as the other worked around her, gearing up the Tornado and getting prepared. By the time they were ready, Sonic and the boys were bouncing off the walls with excitement, ready to go while the girls chuckled to themselves at their immaturity. As Tails drove the Tornado out of the garage, Cream, Cosmo, Tikal, Bunnie and Antoine in the passenger seats, Rouge flew up into the sky waiting to be joined.

Knuckles, Manic, Sonia and Blaze leapt up onto the wings of the plane as it slowed to a halt while the infamous hedgehog trio sped outside. Shadow politely scooped Sally up bridal style, willing to carry her the way before Sonic briskly scooped Amy up into his arms, genuinely startling her causing her to squeal a little before she let out a giggle as they locked eyes.

'Thanks for the warning.' Amy smirked.

'I didn't think you needed one anymore?' Sonic retorted.

Sally watched on at the two hedgehogs snickering at each other out of the corner of her eye, pretending to ignore it, which she wished she really was doing, but for some reason couldn't bring herself to do. Something was pulling at her deep down inside, telling her to jump out of Shadow's arms, run over to them and pull the pink girl away from him. But why?

Sure, she'd loved Sonic before but… she'd been with other guys since then. She didn't feel that way anymore. It was just the overwhelming feeling of seeing him again. Yeah, that was it. Plus, it was just weird - no, different – seeing him like that with someone else. Although, from what she'd gathered, Amy and Sonic weren't exactly the same way he and her had been, but certainly didn't appear much different. They were just so-

'They're disgusting.' Shadow huffed, breaking Sally's train of thought.

'Hmm? Oh, I don't know. They're kind of sweet.' The chipmunk shrugged.

'Didn't you and Faker have a thing way back when? Not that I really care.'

'Yeah we did, but we're just good friends these days.'

'I see.' Shadow nodded slowly.

'What?' Sally cocked a brow as she adjusted herself in his arms.

'Nothing? I just… Well, you just seem like you- you know what, never mind.'

'What are you-'

'Alright, guys. Let's do it!' Tails exclaimed to everyone, cutting Sally off.

Before she had a chance to ask the ebony hero again, he sped off after Sonic along the dirt track and towards Eggman's base. Rouge flew a little ahead of them, lowering down to their level and weaving in between trees for fun, making Amy giggle before going back up to the Tornado to give Tails and the others a thumbs up. The kitsune keyed in a few commands on the plane's dashboard, bringing up the directions towards the base and connecting everyone's communicators.

'Looks like it should be a couple hundred miles away, sound about right, Sally?' Tails questioned.

'Makes sense. It's in a pretty obvious place, above ground, but he could have put in more camouflage guards since then.' Sally responded.

'Soon find out.' Rouge smirked excitedly.

Thanks to the speed of Tornado, Sonic, Shadow and Rouge, it didn't take too long before the gang made it into the forest where they landed the Tornado and got to setting out to find the new base. They'd already deactivated all the guard bots, but Cream had hold of one of Tails' devices to keep track of the surrounds just in case of any surprises that could pop up.

They walked on for a few miles, traipsing through the thick scrub and keeping a look out for anything they may have found familiar. Sally, Bunnie and Antoine walked ahead with Sonic, Tails, Shadow and Amy right behind, the rest of the gang on their heels. Sally was looking around intently, trying to keep an eye out for what she found familiar before losing focus and tripping over a rock, stumbling and almost face planting only to be caught.

'That was a close one!' Sonic chuckled as he held the brunette chipmunk in his arms.

'Y-Yeah, thanks, Sonic.' Sally smiled through a blush, sub consciously ceasing the opportunity.

She forced herself to keep their eyes locked together as she slowly stood up, still holding onto Sonic's well developed biceps so she could stay in his grip a little longer. She blushed furiously as a small, seductive smile crept across her face making the rest of the world disappear around them. Sonic felt his stomach drop and his face heat up as he tried to tear his eyes away, but couldn't bring himself to.

Had they been less focused on each other, they would have felt a burning glare from a certain fuchsia hedgehog in the back of their heads. Maybe it was only her looking too deeply into the situation, but she felt Sally was only doing it to get at her… which was true, despite the fact Sally hadn't even worked it out for herself yet. Rouge, Blaze and Sonia subtly looked at Amy waiting for her to snap, and thanked Chaos Knuckles got the gang moving before she could…

* * *

'There it is, left out in the open.' Tikal smiled as the gang look on at the opening of the base from behind bushes.

'Old Egghead'll never learn.' Manic smirked.

'So, now what?' Cream asked, putting away the small device after checking the coast was clear.

'Let's get in there!' Sonic exclaimed excitedly only to be pulled back by Antoine and Knuckles.

'You haven't changed a bit, Sugarhog.' Bunnie giggled.

'We need to check it all out before we barge in there.' Blaze stated as she examined the front of the base.

'Yeah, if it blew Sally away from just snooping around, it could do that same to us.' Amy added, subtly taking a jab.

'So, where should we start?' Silver asked, jumping in before any awkward tension rose.

'Split up. Half around one side, half around the other and scope out this new contraption from each side.' Shadow instructed.

'Sounds like the plan.' Antoine nodded to agree.

'Alright then, let's do it!' Sonia jumped up excitedly.

'You're really not that different.' Cosmo giggled as she looked between Sonia and Sonic.

'That's not even the worst of it…' Knuckles shook his head through a snicker.

It didn't take much more than that before they all split up and got to sneaking around the outsides of the base, finding windows and openings of all kinds to sneak looks at the new beast. Everyone split up more and more, finding their own way to look at the new beast that, low and behold, appeared to be unguarded, so they could see what looked like a twenty story bulking robot. On the outside it didn't look that dangerous, but who knew what it held on the inside…


	5. New Stakes

**Hello again, everyone!**

 **Here is chapter 5, I hope you're all enjoying it so far! Tension is getting full on between Sally and Amy! What will happen next? Sorry this took a bit longer to get out, FFN has been stuffing up! The song mention at the end of this chapter is 'Follow Me' by Hardwell ft. Jason Derulo. Awesome Song! Enjoy!**

 **Ciao! xx**

* * *

'I can't see anything!' Cream exclaimed in a whisper, standing on her tip toes trying to wiggle around Silver and Manic.

'Hang on, here.' Silver whispered, pulling her up into a piggy back position so she could see through the whole.

'So, what do you guys make of it?' Manic questioned through the communicators.

'It's too big not to be lethal.' Blaze thought aloud, exchanging a glance with Knuckles.

'That hasn't stopped him before.' The red echidna smirked, peeking through their window.

'Well, it is unguarded…' Shadow trailed off, a hint of a playful smirk making its way across his muzzle as he looked at Sonic.

'All we'd have to do is-'

'No! Do not even think about it Sonic the Hedgehog.' Sonia cut her little brother off through the communicator, startling Antoine and Bunnie by her sides.

'Dare I say this, but Sonic may be right. We do need the better look!' Antoine thought aloud, Bunnie holding onto his arm firmly.

'What would you suggest?' Amy asked genuinely.

Everyone went silent after hearing Amy's question, only able to hear the wind rustling through the trees behind them and the beeping of machines on the other side of the base as they looked through the windows. Sally, Tikal and Cosmo were gathered around a window, thinking along with everyone else and watching the new contraption before a flicker of light caught Tikal's eye.

She looked up to see a huge sky light, the centre window left wide open. She tilted her head in thought before a smile slowly made its way across her tan muzzle, causing her to nudge Cosmo gently a point up to it. Cosmo followed her line of sight, as did Sally shortly after before the three exchanged a happy, quiet look and opened up their communicators again.

'Hey guys, look up.' Cosmo smiled through her words, everyone doing as they were told.

'That centre window is open, I think.' Sally added after everyone's attention was focused.

'I think if Rouge and Tails fly up then-'

'We can get a better view of what's inside it!' Rouge exclaimed quietly, cutting Tikal off.

'Let's do it!' Tails added.

With that, Rouge and Tails boosted themselves up from the window they were peering through and flew up to the roof. They slowly and cautiously landed of the edge of the sky light before crawling up to the open window, looking down and giving the thumbs up to the rest of the gang around the outside windows. The two airborne heroes then leaned in a little further so they were hanging inside a little, trying to get a better view and maybe a better ear…

'I want the repairs fixed immediately!' A familiar voice hounded from down the corridor.

'Yes, Doctor Eggman.' A robotic voice answered.

'It's about time.' Rouge whispered.

'You think we should hide?' Tails cocked a brow in her direction.

'Trust me, we'll be fine.'

Tails shrugged off his concern before looking down again, Rouge following his line of sight. They kept their focus on Eggman who had now walked into the room, headed towards the beast. Now that they'd had a better look, they could see the insides of the metallic contraption. There was certainly more than met the eye from before… It was filled with gizmos and gadgets of all kinds that could shoot out, claw at and everything in between.

Eggman continued the scream orders at his two sidebots while Rouge and Tails scanned the rest of the room before his screeches caught their attention again. They looked back to see him pointing towards a certain lower part of the beast, causing the robots to run over to it and key in a few commands before a cage emerged from its insides. Inside that cage were painful tortures of all kinds, causing Tails' eyes to bulge and Rouge's breath to catch in her throat.

'Sweet Chaos, I hope there's no more to it.' Tails whispered.

As if on cue, Eggman snickered and smashed his fist down on a large, blue button on his dashboard. As fast as a bolt of lightning, the head of the tall, bulky robot twitched before two luminous, electric blue circles illuminated its face as if to represent angry, sadistic eyes. The same electric blue irradiated lower down its face, making a thin line to create an angry scowl.

 _'Destroy Mobians. Destroy Mobians.' The robot stated loudly._

'You had to say something, didn't you?' Rouge snapped as she turned to Tails.

The two-tailed kitsune smiled weakly before the two crawled backwards and off the sky light before sliding down the side of the base. They boosted themselves off and flew into the air before landing quietly on the ground, causing the rest of the gang to run around and meet them. Rouge crouched down as she landed before standing up and dusting herself off, shaking her head to clear her head, as did Tails.

'We've got to get out of here!' Tails exclaimed in a whisper, Rouge coming up behind him as Blaze and Knuckles got to them first.

'What happened?' Cream asked as she ran towards them, Silver and Manic behind her.

'What did you see, guys?' Sally added as her, Tikal and Cosmo got there.

'We just need to get the hell out of here, we'll discuss it later!' Rouge exclaimed firmly.

'Alright, everyone get to the Tornado, now!' Sonic instructed.

Everyone quickly made their way into the forest and out of the open near the base before quickly making their way towards the X-Tornado. Again, it didn't take long before they made it there, and everyone resuming their original positions before Rouge made her way in and out of the canopy along with Tails and the other in the ship.

They dashed back home quickly, keeping up with Rouge's powerful wings and Tails pushing the Tornado's regular motors to new lengths in order to get home faster. No one spoke much on the way home, wondering what had gotten Tails and Rouge so riled but figured they were going to find out soon after they landed in the garage.

* * *

'I can't help but laugh at how stupid they continue to get.' Eggman snickered to himself as he stroked his moustache.

'They make you look even smarter, boss!' Decoe exclaimed, earning him an evil glare from the doctor.

'Does this mean we should set the MultiBot out now?' Bocoe asked as he looked up at the beastly contraption.

'No, no. We'll be bringing them to it.'

'But how, Doctor?'

'Believe me, they'll come.' Eggman chuckled.

He spun around in his chair and looked back up at his security camera screens, watching the gang run towards the Tornado and fly away back towards Knothole. He chuckled to himself, shaking his head as they ran away genuinely worried. He didn't want to admit it, but he knew he'd never really worried them before, and seeing them this worked up made him bubbly inside.

It was true, this was probably his best idea yet and maybe even his best invention. It certainly seemed that way if it got the team so riled up. It took time but he was sure he'd perfected it, better yet it caused Sonic and the gang to let their guard down for a while. Now all he had to do was make a few finishing touches to his plan… and all of Mobius would be his.

.

The trip back home felt longer than what it really was, it was rare the gang travelled in silence. No one dared to speak the whole way home, one eye on Rouge and Tails the entire time and their tense demeanours. After they'd landed in the garage, got out of the Tornado and made their way up to the living room, Shadow and Sonic were growing impatient.

It didn't take much more than the two hedgehog's tapping feet and cocked eyebrows to get Rouge to let out a defeated sigh and begin talking, Tails filling in the blanks here and there. To begin with, most of the gang didn't believe them, not that they thought they would lie but… well, it just seemed very hard to comprehend. As the explanation went on, however…

'No way, uh-uh. There's no way Egghead could have created something so powerful without the Chaos Emeralds.' Silver stated firmly.

'Or at all for that matter.' Tikal added.

'Well, we didn't exactly stop to ask how he was doing it.' Rouge sighed as she took a seat and began rubbing her temples.

'That must be what's taken him so long to do anything then? Working out how to create something so huge.' Knuckles thought aloud.

'What else could he possibly be using to create so much power besides the Chaos Emeralds and Master Emerald?' Cosmo questioned.

'He must be generating some sort of artificial power. Probably through another array of machines he has stored away.' Tails suggested.

'Well, whatever it is, it's powerful. For all we know he could be generating enough energy to match the Chaos Emeralds.' Sonia winced a little.

'Then we'd be in trouble.' Cream said more to herself than anyone else.

'Well, what are we gon' do about it, ya'll?' Bunnie asked.

'We're going to need some sort of a plan, that is for sure.' Antoine said.

'We need to take out his power source.' Amy and Sally announced in sync.

The two girls looked at each other a little shocked for a few seconds tension slowly growing to a peak so bad it could be cut with a knife. The girls watched on awkwardly, scared this was going to be the moment Amy snapped, while the boys shrugged off what they merely saw as a coincidence. The two girls broke eye contact and shifted awkwardly in their seats, severing the tension.

'They make a good point, if we can take out whatever he's using to power it, we won't have to take it down directly.' Sonic admitted, causing both girls to focus their attention on him.

'Which is always a good thing.' Manic added.

'It'll eliminate a lot of risk, too. I say it's our best bet.' Shadow said.

'Let's do it, then!' Blaze announced.

Everyone agreed to go back out to Eggman's base the following day to take out the power source of the robot, allowing them to rest up. After a relaxing afternoon, giving them a chance to just hang around and be themselves along with some intricate planning before everyone set out their separate ways home.

The sun was setting over the horizon by the time everyone had made their ways home, settling in for the night and making themselves dinner and whatnot. Knuckles made his way back to the Master Emerald, Rouge on his tail ready to catch up with the emerald itself, Silver and Blaze made their way back to Manic and Sonia's apartment for the afternoon, going over more of the plans.

Cosmo and Cream went back to Cream's mother's house, inviting Tikal back for dinner and a sleepover while Shadow went for a run around Mobius. Amy slowly walked home, dragging her feet before making her way to her front door and walking in to collapse on the lounge. Sally, Antoine and Bunnie were still staying with Sonic and Tails, hanging around the living room after everyone had left before Sally went out onto the balcony, taking in the crisp breeze as it drifted through her short hair.

'What's on your mind, Sugar?' Bunnie asked from behind the chipmunk.

'Hmm? Nothing?' Sally shrugged as the rabbit joined her on the balcony.

'Come on now, girl, I know you better than that. Talk to me.'

.

As the moon rose into the sky, somewhere after seven o'clock, Amy was wandering around her kitchen making dinner and listen to some music. As she tossed the vegetables around in the pan absent-mindedly, she let the rest of the world around her become a blur as she listened to the music stream out of her speakers and try to block out all of her incoming thoughts.

 _Is it a sin that I want it bad  
Halfway to hell I've made my bed  
Baby give in and we'll be gone  
If I go will you follow me home?_

Amy sang to herself subconsciously, serving her dinner before pouring herself a glass of wine. As she set it down on her kitchen table, leaving the left overs on the bench for now, she stared at them and realised she wasn't event hat hungry anymore. She'd tried to block everything out all afternoon, but she couldn't stop thinking about Sonic, not that that was new but now Sally was weaselling her way into her mind.

 _Come get me high  
So I won't be low.  
If I go will you follow me home tonight?  
You don't have to be alone tonight  
If I go will you follow me?_

She didn't hate Sally - she didn't think, anyway – but she didn't exactly love her, either. She knew the lovely brunette princess was a threat though, and she could already tell Sonic was attracted to her. She didn't know what she was going to do. If she made things anymore obvious, it would just get more and more embarrassing. How was she supposed to-

'What the…' Amy's thoughts cut off, thinking aloud when she heard a knock at her door.

She took a sip of her wine before placing it back down on the kitchen table and headed towards the front door. As she continued to walk, she straightened out her dress and brushed away all the individual dirt before wondering who could possibly who was there at that time unannounced. Maybe it was a trap? No. She was being paranoid. She shook away her thoughts, grabbed the brass handle and opened the door.

'S-Sally?' Amy stammered, her eyes widening.


	6. Water Under The Bridge

At the mention of her name, the brunette chipmunk tensed a little, quickly second guessing her decision to come here. Completely unintentional, but it seemed to be the only thing possible for a brief moment was the two females staring at each other timidly – one more so than the other – as Amy held the door open and Sally stood on her front doorstep.

'Uh, hi? Is everything ok?' Amy asked cautiously after snapping out of a confused trance.

'Oh, yes, of course! I was just wondering if we could talk?' Sally insinuated the question.

'Yeah, sure, come in.'

Sally nodded through a smile as if the thank the fuchsia hedgehog after she stepped to the side, giving the chipmunk ample room to walk through and into her living room. Amy closed the door behind her thoroughly, as if that would help her avoid the inevitable. She offered Sally a seat in the living room before announcing she would be just a second, to which the chipmunk politely complied.

The bubble gum heroine didn't know why she was here or what she wanted, all she knew was she would probably need a glass of wine before they began. Sally probably would decline one as well. She pulled out another glass from her cupboard and pulled out the bottle from which she'd poured her own glass out of the fridge before taking it into the living room, setting it down and taking a seat by the chipmunk.

'Drink?' Amy offered bluntly, pouring them both a glass regardless.

'Please.' Sally accepted, hoping her eagerness was hidden.

The two continued to sit in what could only be described as an almost unbearably awkward silence as Amy poured her guest a glass, both of them listening to the liquid hit the edges of the crystal as it slowly but surely filled further and further to the top. Sally nodded through a smile as if to say thanks before they both took a slightly longer than polite sip.

'So, Sally, what can I do for you?' Amy asked as she put her glass down, partly trying to kill the uncomfortable silence and partly out of curiosity.

'Oh, well, it's a little embarrassing and awkward I suppose, and-'

'Sally, I think we passed awkward when you walked in the door.' Amy cut her off with a hint of a smile.

A small smile spread across the Princess' face as she bowed her head, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. She looked back up to find Amy looking at her with the same smile, before the two burst into a fit of laughter, both almost spilling their glasses of booze. Amy picked up the bottle and topped off both their glasses before they clinked them together in cheers.

'Come on, Sally, cards on the table. Just spill and tell me what you came here to tell me.' Amy said through a genuine smile.

'Well,' Sally began a little more confidently, probably thanks to the wine, 'since I got here with Bunnie and Antoine, I've been getting the feeling you haven't really taken much of a liking to me.'

'What would make you think that?' Amy asked with an obvious fake quality to her voice as the two finished off their second glasses simultaneously.

'Oh, come on, Amy! We were friends way back when, and as soon as I show up now I get the cold shoulder. Not only that, it's only me! You don't hate Bunnie and Antoine? Plus-'

'I don't hate you, Sally.' Amy rolled her eyes, cutting off Sally's nervous and slightly drunken rant.

'You don't? Really?' Sally questioned, genuinely shocked.

'No! I see you as a threat.'

Amy said this through a shrug so casually as if she had just told Sally what she'd had for dinner, making Sally all the more confused as she watched the fuchsia hedgehog sit back comfortable and sip on her glass of wine. The chipmunk tilted her head and stared at the hedgehog across from her in thought and blatant confusion, trying to come up with the first question.

'Wait, what?' _'Yeah, that should do it.'_

'You're my biggest threat, Sally? Don't you think that's obvious?' Amy cocked a brow.

'If I knew that, I wouldn't be asking.' Sally chuckled as she grabbed the bottle and emptied it into both their glasses.

Amy nodded a little in agreement as she held out her glass long enough to let the last few drops from the bottle to hit her glass. She swivelled the liquid around in the glass a few times, watching the bubbles rise and pop, releasing the tiniest of rainbows throughout the yellowish fluid. She let out a sigh, knowing she couldn't put off telling Sally the truth.

'Ok, ok, ok. I know you and Sonic weren't ever really official or whatever when we were younger but, when you left – not that I was _happy_ to see you go – it gave me a better chance to grow close to him.' Amy shrugged nervously, bowing her head in attempt to hide an embarrassed blush.

'I see.' Sally cooed, knowing where Amy was going.

'Obviously it took some time but, nowadays he and I have grown really close and things are slowly becoming a reality.'

Amy suddenly looked up to stare Sally in the eyes, trying to mask her pain but it was almost impossible not to see. The second Sally noticed it, she felt her stomach drop a little, suddenly feeling what was probably more sympathy for Amy than she'd expected to. She watched Amy stand up and head to the kitchen silently, letting out a brief sigh before coming back with another open bottle of wine.

'When I came down those garage stairs and saw you, I… I was… I don't even know.' The pink bundle of quills shrugged off as she topped off their glasses.

'Well, I'll be honest with you, when Sonic first found me a few days back, I was so overwhelmed with happiness to see him again – as a friend, of course – and then after a short time, I could forget all those old feelings.'

'Yeah, well, I don't doubt you're going to have a whole lot more feelings soon enough.'

Amy sighed sadly, trying to pass it off as a tired yawn as she placed the bottle down on the table and picked up her glass, swivelling it around in her hand and made every effort to avoid Sally's gaze. The brunette chipmunk was quick to catch onto her subtle gist. She looked at Amy intent, watching the hope in her eyes for Sonic fade away faster than his feet.

'Amy,' Sally began by placing her glass down and forcing the hedgehog to look at her, 'sure those feelings surfaced, as a reminder, not a reality. Sure, he and I had feelings for each other but… he never looked at me the way he looks at you.'

'W-What?' Amy stammered through wide eyes, watching Sally's smile.

'When I see you two together, even so much as in the same room, it's so obvious how he feels about you. He lights up when you're around, you can see the fireworks exploding in his mind when you talk and the butterflies pop in his stomach when you smile. He might not be ready to admit it yet, but he loves you, Amy.'

'So, you were never going to come in the way of that?' Amy asked.

'No! I want him to be happy, I want you to be happy! You both deserve…' Sally trailed off, her happy and relieved facial expression changing to one of concern.

'What is it?' Amy questioned her odd behaviour.

'Do you smell something? Like something's… burning?'

'Yeah? I'm not cooking anything… Wonder what that-'

Amy cut herself off at her entire house suddenly falling dark with a power cut, the only light being the moonlight that shone through her windows and bounced off any reflective surface it could find. Amy stumbled against the coffee table, stubbing her toe and knocking the wine over, cursing under her breath and finding Sally helping her stable herself.

As the two steadied themselves, they found the scent of smoke getting stronger and stronger, slowly turning into what smelt like something poisonous or venomous. They looked around and caught sight of the moonlight bouncing off the fridge and stove in the kitchen, giving them a view of the outlines of smog beginning to trace through the house.

'What is that?!' Sally exclaimed as she began to cough.

'I… I have no idea!' Amy answered through her own splutters.

They suddenly felt staccato rumbles growing bigger and louder beneath their feet, startling them in their now hazed trance. They looked around further, trying harder and harder to see until they caught the light again, now seeing a snake like arm coming towards them slowly… at least it seemed that way. Maybe it was the effects of what was obviously toxic smoke that made it look that way, but it also made it a lot harder to get away.

'Run!' The two girls screamed in sync only for Sally to stumble on the bottle, hitting her head on the edge of the table and falling unconscious.

'Sally!' Amy screeched, trying to find her through the now even thicker smog.

She fell to her hands and knees, growing weaker and weaker, sicker and sicker by the second but more determined than ever to continue crawling and find Sally before getting out of there. She tilted her head up to find the snake like arm, that she now realised was part of a robot, heading down towards her. She coughed as she looked forward one last time before falling unconscious, her last vision of Sally unconscious on the floor.

* * *

As the sun rose the next morning, Tails awoke to the warm rays on his face, spreading a smile across his face. He was quick to get himself up, showered and into the kitchen to make himself breakfast. He looked at his wrist communicator to check the time to see it was around eight o'clock, surprisingly late for him, however practically the middle of the night for a certain blue hedgehog.

As he passed down the hall on the way to the kitchen, he sub-consciously looked in the open door to the room where Bunnie, Sally and Antoine were sleeping, and quickly noticed that a certain Princess wasn't there. He did a double take, sure his eyes were tricking him. He saw Bunnie and Antoine still sleeping before shrugging it off, figuring she was probably in the kitchen.

'What's up, Sugar?' Bunnie's sleepy voice whispered from the hallway entry.

'Where's Sally?' Tails asked quickly.

'She's not already up?'

'What is it, my love?' Antoine asked, coming up behind his wife and rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

'Have you seen Sally?' Tails asked again.

'Not since Bunnie was talking to her last night on the balcony?'

'Oh, that's right. I went to bed before she got back though.' Bunnie recapped.

'What gives guys, it's like the middle of the night?!' Sonic whined, rubbing his eyes like a baby as he dragged his feet into the living room, clearly unimpressed with being woken up by the voices.

'It is after eight o'clock, Sonic.' Antoine rolled his eyes.

'Eight in the morning?! Are you all mad?! Goodnight.' Sonic smirked before turning to head back down the hall.

'Sonic, wait. When did you last see Sally?' Tails questioned his brotherly figure.

'I dunno, I saw her go for a walk last night after she was talking to you right, Bunnie?' Sonic answered eagerly, wanting to go back to sleep.

'What have I missed here?' Tails asked, beginning to grow impatient, much unlike him.

'After everyone left last night I caught my girl out on the balcony, and she looked upset. So, I went out there to see what the matter was and she eventually confessed she was feeling uneasy about the tension between her and Amy.' Bunnie began.

'What tension?' Sonic asked, genuinely surprised.

'You have not changed a bit, Sonic the Hedgehog.' Antoine chuckled to himself.

'Anyway,' Bunnie continued, 'I pointed out that it was still light out and it wouldn't hurt to go over and see her to sort things out. Which I guess is the walk you saw her go on, Sugarhog.'

'So, she never came back?' Tails cocked a brow.

'She probably just had an over sleep or something?' Antoine suggested.

'A sleepover, sweetie.' Bunnie corrected him with a loving smile.

'Still sounds fishy, because to be honest I doubt that would be the case.' Tails smirked to himself a little.

'Hey now, let's not jump to conclusions. We'll go and check it out, right pal?' Sonic smiled, to receive an eager nod from the two tailed kitsune.

.

It didn't take much longer than a suspicious and worried conversation for Sonic and Tails to start making their way over to Amy's cottage home. Antoine tried to reassure Bunnie everything was fine, eventually convincing her to stay back with him and make breakfast for when they all came back. Sonic was really only jogging along the dirt path, Tails flying behind him.

When Amy's house came into view, Sonic skidded to a halt causing Tails to bump into him from behind. Sonic stood frozen, shocked and panic stricken. Amy didn't have tinted windows, so how cold they have such a dark, misty quality to them all of a sudden? He sped over towards the front store within a second, Tails following behind, as the blue blur grabbed the door handle.

'It's unlocked? She must be home.' Sonic said more to himself than Tails.

'Exactly, she never leaves without locking all the doors.' Tails added, reassuring the two of them.

They walked inside slowly, looking around the living room intently, kind of expecting to see Amy. Tails immediately inspected the windows, using his gloved finger to rub what looked like dust of the glass. On closer inspection, he realised it was reside from a thick mist that was beginning to stick to any cold surface it could find, much like a window's reflective surface.

'Hey Sonic, check this-'

Tails cut himself off when he turned around to see Sonic staring down at the floor in front of Amy's coffee table. The young kitsune stayed still for a few seconds before cautiously making his way towards his brotherly figure. When he got to the hero's side, he followed his gaze to find a spilt bottle of wine, a cracked wine glass and a completely shattered wine glass lying on the floor.

'W-What do you think-'

'I don't think that's the worst of it.' Sonic cut Tails off before pointing to the edges of the table.

The young fox followed the direction of his finger before crouching into a squat to get a better view. One of the sharp edges of the coffee table was stained with dried blood, having dripped down the side before it dried a dark crimson colour. On the other side of the table, there was more blood, less of it but nonetheless there.

Tails looked at both of the patches of blood further, Sonic hovering over him silently. It looked as though some had cut themselves on the edges, maybe having run into it before stubbing their toe or something? The corner on the other hand… it looked like someone had tripped over something before hitting their head on the edge before… falling unconscious. 


	7. Don't Be Greedy

Amy's head was pounding so hard and fast she couldn't find the strength to open her eyes, but she was slowly registering the fact she was awake. She wasn't sure if it was the lasting effects from the toxic gas or the lasting effects from the one too many glasses of wine, but what was probably a mix was giving her what she was sure was going to be a small implosion in her brain. When she finally opened her eyes and turned to the side, all she saw was Sally with a cut on her temple.

'Sally!' Amy tried to exclaim but came out as a wispy cough.

Amy forced herself to drag her limp body a few feet over to the chipmunk before falling to her elbows, using the little energy she had to begin shaking Sally's arms and shoulders until she finally came to. She let out a groan as her palm found her head, putting pressure on her fresh wound, slowly opening her eyes to see Amy just above her.

'What the hell happened? Where are we?' Sally question in a haze as the two slowly sat up.

'I don't know, I'll bet it has something to do with that God awful smoke from before.'

'How the hell are we going to get out of here?'

Sally trailed off as she finally got to her feet, Amy following behind her slowly. They couldn't go far, not that they could see much in the dimly lit circular cell they found themselves trapped in. As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, they looked up to find two cameras at either end of the cell. Sally growled under her breath as Amy went to whip out her hammer, feeling the cruel realisation that she didn't have it.

'Well, someone knows how to get out.' Amy pointed to the cameras half-heartedly, letting her hand fall down and slap her side.

'Who the hell would have something so-'

Sally cut herself off at the sound of grinding metal and timid rumbling beneath their feet as a crack in the room split, opening two doors wide enough to release the cage they were in out into the open. As it screeched to a halt, the two girls fell on their faces before propping themselves up on their knees to see the face they should've suspected all along.

'I can't believe I was even going to ask.' Sally sighed.

'Good morning, ladies.' Eggman snickered, stroking his moustache as he watched the girls get back to their feet.

'Morning?!' The two exclaimed.

'It's sad really, the rest of your freaky friends haven't even bothered to come and find you yet. You've been passed out for at least twelve hours.'

'They'll be coming, Egghead. Just like every other time.' Amy snarled.

'I love how you admit to being the damsel in distress 'every other time'.' Eggman cackled.

'Bite me.'

'Oh come now, don't be so sour? You are right, Sonic will be coming… but it's not for you anymore.'

Eggman began to chuckle to himself as he turned around to examine his dashboard mindlessly, feeling Amy's curious stare burn in the back of his head, Sally's eyebrow arched skeptically. He heard Amy stammer a little before stopping to compose herself, causing him to turn around and walk towards them, right up to the cage this time.

'Oh, Amy. Sweet, naïve little Amy.' Eggman began.

'I hate you.' Amy growled.

'You know as well as I do that Sonic doesn't really love you, especially now that this one is back in the picture.' He taunted as he gestured to Sally.

'Don't listen to him, Amy, you know what he's trying to do!' Sally jumped in, quickly catching on.

'Do what?' Eggman questioned with a fake innocence before turning to Sally and beginning to bow, 'Oh, and do forgive me, Princess. It's an honour, really.'

He rose back up and snickered to himself as he looked on and watched Sally turn up her nose in disgust and anger. He turned his attention briefly to his sidebots, quietly gesturing for them to take their places on guarding the control panels and cameras before beginning to pace in front of the opening to the girls' cage.

'Come on, Amy. Surely you don't think that after all these years, Princess Sally Acorn just so happened to stumble across none other than Sonic himself? Appearing helpless and hurt? You don't think that in addition to getting a little extra help, she wouldn't want some sort of… _reward?_ ' He smirked, his implication obvious.

'They're all coming for us! You're going to be real sorry, Eggman!' Sally screeched lividly, shaking the bars and letting all her self-control flee before her.

Amy watched on, standing unusually still and staring at Sally with immense concentration plastered across her face as Sally's not-so-lady-like vocabulary and threats fled her body in a blur. Sally was a Princess. At the end of the day, she could have whatever she wanted. Including Sonic. Was here coming to see Amy last night just a tactic to get her out of the way?

 _Don't let Eggman get inside your head, Amy!_

Sally's defensive behaviour could be taken either way. Was she defending Amy's feelings, or herself? Did she mean what she said? That while she'd felt the rush of old feelings return, the blue hued hero was meant for Amy? Eggman had a point though, how was it after all this time, out of everyone in the gang she could have come across… it was Sonic?

 _What if she-_

Amy's thoughts were cut off, snapping her back to reality at the sound of a small explosion behind Eggman, off to the side and almost out of Amy and Sally's sights.' It shook the ground enough to catch the girls off guard and cause them to stumble to the ground, but it was as though Eggman had expected it, was completely prepared for it.

'Told you they'd be here!' Sally exclaimed as the gang finally came into clear view.

'Egghead, are you underestimating us again?' Sonic arched a brow through a cocky smile.

When the Doctor finally managed to get his eyes back into their sockets, her growled under his breath and shot Decoe and Bocoe looks as if commanding them to read his mind and execute. On cue, the two sidebots cowered, shrinking into themselves before keying in a few fast and simple commands on the dashboard controls and activating the metallic beast.

The ghastly piece of metal lit up instantly, it's evil, artificial face coming into view before exposing all its limbs. The gang braced themselves to fight, expecting all those claws, drills and all in between to fly towards them but instead it took on the complete opposite approach and drove all those cynical and sinister objects into _itself._

'What in the name of…' Antoine trailed off silently.

Within a few seconds, the cage that Sally and Amy were held in began to light up dimly, before the syringes and sprayers on the other end of those shiny limbs entered the top. A few claws and drills entered, as if it wasn't already threatening enough, while the rest stayed lingering outside it's inner cage, ready to strike the others.

'Oh dear, in quite the pickle now, aren't we?' Eggman said plainly.

'Let them go, Eggman.' Manic said calmly but firmly, his eyes locked on Sally.

'You know you're going to, or we're going to force you. Save us the trouble?' Rouge shrugged through an almost flirtatious smile.

'Don't coax him, Bat.' Shadow spat.

'Hmmm, you know what? I'm going to make you all a little deal.' Eggman smiled as he began to stroke his beard methodically.

'This should be good.' Blaze snorted.

'I'm going to give Sonic a choice. Amy or Sally?'

'What?!' Cosmo and Tails exclaimed, Sonic's eyes wide open and speechless.

'Ol' Doc has lost his mind in his old age, ya'll.' Bunnie sighed.

'So you're saying, you'll let one out and walk away freely?' Knuckles cocked a brow, merely clarifying, for Eggman to nod.

Sonic stared the obese Doctor down before his eyes flickered over to the cage. Amy and Sally were both standing strong side by side, the brunette chipmunk still sub consciously gripping the bars and snarling at the scientist while Amy remained still and firm, locking eyes with the cobalt speedster. Sonic knew he wasn't going to make a choice, but he wasn't sure how he was going to get them out yet either.

'So who is it, Hedgehog? Do you choose Amy; naïve, little, obsessive and slightly insane Amy? Or Princess Sally; strong, intelligent and, admittedly, kind of crazy when raged.' Eggman asked again as he took a seat casually.

'You've really lost your mind if you think we're going to choose.' Sonia spoke up.

'You're not the one with the decision.'

'So you think Sonic is going to make it?' Silver questioned firmly.

As the Doctor continued to talk and almost boast, assuming he had time on his hands, Tikal made her way into his head. She used up a lot of energy, being surrounded by so many other minds and scientific contraptions. She couldn't dare let on how much it was draining her or she'd be caught out, but she got the job done. He was confident this time round, sure he had them. Only he'd forgotten Tikal could look inside him and see exactly how to disconnect it all.

She was standing further to the back of the gang, able to close her eyes and telepathically speak to the one closest to the wires necessary to destroy… Cream. The peach echidna new it would be more ideal for more practiced hands to do this, such as Tails, but being by Sonic's side there was no way he could slip away unnoticed. Tikal had faith though, the young rabbit had had her fair share of lessons from the kitsune after all.

 _'Cream. Don't make any sudden movements.' Tikal instructed, causing the young bunny to tense only in the slightest._

 _'I know how to disconnect it, I'll talk you through it. Trust me.'_

Out of her peripheral vision, she saw Cream give a small nod before beginning to follow all her instructions. The young, skilled and now very frightened young girl had soon made her way behind the beast, unseen even by the gang besides Tikal. She found everything the peach echidna told her, Tikal still scanning her vision of Eggman's brain in order to give instructions, and began disconnect and destroying an array of controls, wires and all else.

'Alright, let's do this hypothetically, because we have time on our hands after all.' Eggman shrugged and got to his feet.

'That's what you think.' Sonic huffed, finally speaking.

'Now, hypothetically, who would you choose? To save, to see, just in general. Who would you choose, Sonic?'

'I wouldn't chose.' Sonic stated plainly and firmly.

'Come now, Sonic. Don't be greedy.' Eggman teased.

'This is ridiculous! Ludicrous! What does this have to do with anything?' Shadow questioned, growing impatient.

'To begin with it was merely me being generous but now I'm genuinely curious. Truth is, that even regardless of a life or death situation for the pair, Sonic would still choose one over the other. I want to know, on any given day, who it would be.' Eggman shrugged, now walking towards the control panel himself.

'That's it!' Sonic exclaimed, both his patience and anger having reached their peak.

The sapphire hero grit his teeth as he dashed towards his arch nemesis, not giving the rest of the gang – particularly Tikal – a second to stop him. On instinct, Eggman took a protective step backwards, his hands gripping the panel behind him and having pressed the wrong set of buttons, causing all sorts of things to start going off and through the cage.

Amy and Sally let out a screech before it all began to malfunction, smoking and sparking before the entire beast blew up, taking the base with it. Smoke and fire rose everywhere, thick and smoggy, throwing the chipmunk and hedgehog as far from it as it could… Also throwing Cream back with violent electric shocks coursing through her body… _  
_


	8. Snap, Crackle, Pop

**'Sup ya'll?**

 **Sorry this one took a while, I just hadn't gotten around to it yet! Here we are though, chapter 8! Be sure to read and review, tell all your friends to check it out! Also, be sure to check out my other stories! Enjoy!**

 **Ciao! xx**

* * *

Silence.

Silence gradually broke with the sounds of high pitched buzzing. As eyes opened they were clouded with the thick smoke that now flooded the entire base that was beginning to crumble around them. Eggman's latest metallic beast was set ablaze, still sparking and smoking as it stabbed, clawed and sprayed its own cage that Sally and Amy had been thrown from.

'Amy!' Sonic began before coughing as he crawled to his feet. 'Sally!'

He fell back down to his knees as he coughed up his entire lungs, his head hanging down as he felt himself slowly fade away. He forced himself to look up again, turning to the right and left, only able to see Shadow and Silver coughing and spluttering as they got to their knees along with Cosmo and Blaze passed out next to each other.

He knew the others were close by, he just couldn't find them. As he crawled a few paces forward, he could make out a grossly obese figure and two lanky, metal figures running in the opposite direction, slowly fading away from the smoke and fire. Sonic felt his chest cave through a sigh before he tried to get back to his feet, only to trip over another body.

'Tails! Tails, buddy, wake up!' Sonic coughed as he tried to shake the kitsune's shoulders.

'What happened?' Tails coughed as he came to.

'Tails, get Silver and Manic to help me find the girls. The rest of you get out of here!'

 _'Cream…'_

'Tikal?!' Sonic and Tails said in sync before looking around for the echidna.

'Cream… Where's Cream?' Tikal coughed up as she crawled over to them.

'Cream?' Sonic questioned as he looked around.

Tikal then collapsed on Tails' torso after the kitsune passed out again himself. Sonic forced himself to his feet to find Silver and Manic, he'd need help if he was going to get everyone out. He found the grey hedgehog first, struggling to his feet before stumbling over to Manic and getting him to his feet. They helped each other along over towards Sonic after seeing him, knowing they'd need to get out now.

'Where's everyone else?' Manic coughed.

'They're all coming to, but we need to find the girls!' Silver exclaimed as best he could.

'Something's wrong with Cream, we need to find her.' Sonic spluttered.

'Cream?!' Silver exclaimed at the mention of his little sister's name, 'Where is she?!'

'I don't know!'

'She's over by the wall.' Shadow coughed, collapsing at their feet.

Sonic helped pull his doppelganger to his feet, Silver and Manic steadying him before they looked around for the others, only able to see the outlines of a few unconscious bodies through the smoke. The blaze from the beast was beginning to roar bigger, brighter and louder, startling the hedgehogs as they jumped.

'Silver, find Cream. Manic and Shadow, get everyone else out of here! I'll find Sally and Amy!' Sonic commanded, more than anything else, before breaking away from them.

Silver barely watched Sonic stumble away from them before heading his own way in order to find the young rabbit. Shadow and Manic were quick to head their own ways, finding whoever they could and getting them back to the Tornado. As the blaze grew stronger, the smoke grew thicker, making it harder and harder for anyone to do anything.

Shadow and Manic first stumbled across Rouge and Sonia, completely out to the world. Sonia was face down and appeared to have stopped breathing before Manic scooped up his older sister, his heart breaking at the sight of her. Rouge's wings were singed, probably so painful that that was one of the main reasons she'd passed out before Shadow scooped her up and forced himself to run her towards the Tornado.

An adrenaline rush mixed with worry and concern, Silver forced himself to dash around in order to find Cream. He made himself block out the thought of Blaze lying passed out or in pain, trusting that Shadow and Manic would find her. Luckily his thoughts were cut off when he caught sight of Cream… Slouched up against a wall, tangled up in a few wires, her eyes rolled into the back of her head as she convulsed violently.

'Cream!' Silver screamed, about to bolt over to her.

'Don't touch her, Silver.' A weak voice croaked from his feet.

'Blaze!' Silver exclaimed as he bent down to sit her up.

'If you touch her, she'll electrocute you. Use your powers…' The lavender feline trailed off before collapsing.

'Manic! Shadow! Get here now!' Silver screeched.

Shadow dashed towards him with all the strength he could muster and scooped up Blaze carefully out of Silver's arms. Before the crimson and ebony hedgehog had a chance to speed away again, he caught sight of Cream, his eyes bulging out of his head and his stomach twisting up in all sorts of knots. Silver had never seen the G.U.N agent so riled up before, but was quick to get him away before the grey hedgehog picked her up with his powers, using all the strength and power he could find within him.

As Silver focused all is energy on moving Cream, and keeping her alive, Manic and Shadow had returned to the scene. They pulled Knuckles to his feet, forcing him to come to so he could help them find the others, but it took time. When he could stand on his own, the three split up to find more of their friends and get them to safety.

Shadow and Silver scooped up Tails and Tikal before dashing them back to the plane while Manic pulled Bunnie out of a pile of wreckage. A few more trips back and forth later, they had managed to get everyone back to the Tornado, even if they were still either passed out or slowly waking up around it. Sonic on the other hand, still hadn't found Sally or Amy, and his worry was slowly starting to drive him mad…

'Amy! Sally! Where are you? Answer me!' He screamed.

'I've got Sally and I'm taking her back now!' Sonic heard Knuckles call out before his voice disappeared amongst the smoke.

He continued to whirl around and around in a panic, now wondering where Amy could possibly be. Not only was the fear sinking in, but his physicality was deteriorating faster by the second. If he had found her any later, he could have sworn he would have passed out within the base himself, but low and behold there she was…

'Ames?' Sonic whispered, being all he could muster.

She began to cough and splutter harshly, her back hitting the rubble she was slouched up against hard, leaving cuts and bruises. Sonic snapped himself back into a reality before scooping her up into his arms violently, barely thinking about being careful. He could feel her weakly clinging to his chest, her eyes fluttering in an attempt to open, but to no avail.

'Let's get you out of here.' Sonic stated firmly, forcing himself to hold back any and all emotion for the time being.

'Where… the others…' Amy managed to get out.

'They're ok, come on we're getting out of here!'

Sonic looked around again for a quick escape route, not that he could see anything. The blaze was now rising higher and higher, more fire than there was smoke in there now. The cobalt hero feared he was going to get burnt, and more importantly, Amy, but he had to take a chance. He took in a deep breath and squeezed the fuchsia bundle in his arms before making a quick dash outside, mere seconds before the entire base imploded again.

.

'Is everyone out ok?' Antoine yelled out after coughing up a lung full of smoke.

'Where are Sonic and Amy?!' Cosmo questioned forcefully, now awake and coughing up smoke.

'I'll fly back and- argh!' Rouge cut herself off with a painful screech as she tried to raise her wings for the first time since waking up.

'You aren't going anywhere, Sugar.' Bunnie coughed as she leaned forward to hold the ivory bat back.

'Here they come!' Sonia exclaimed as she noticed a large figure come through the smoke.

As Sonic's weak form made his way closer towards the gang and the Tornado, he collapsed to his knees, Amy still firmly in his arms. Manic rushed to his little brother's side and tried to take Amy from his arms, only to be pushed away. The sap hedgehog stepped away for a second before leaning back in to keep his brother upright as he lay Amy down before cradling her in his arms.

'You ok, bro?' Manic whispered.

'I'll live. The others?' Sonic panted, holding Amy firmly.

'Sally is slowly waking up, coming in and out of consciousness. Cream is in trouble though, we need to leave now.' Shadow stated firmly as he made his way over to them as strongly as he could.

'Let's go.'

* * *

It was a long slow ride home. Both Sonic and Tails had to help each other fly the Tornado, everyone either crammed inside or on the wings of the beautiful plane. The sun was going down as they made a rocky landing outside the garage, cautiously helping one another out and getting inside. By now, everyone was well awake, just exhausted, suffering from smoke inhalation, a few were a little concussed and everyone had their own array of other injuries.

All except Amy and Cream, of course. The fuchsia hedgehog had come in and out of consciousness the whole way home, but for now she was completely out to the world. Cream on the other hand had finally stopped seizing and now her eyes were closed, but the gang feared what was actually happening now that she'd stopped. No one dared touch her besides Silver who used his powers to get her out of the plane and onto a lounge in the living room.

Sonic scooped Amy up into his arms firmly and carried her to the small bed in the garage. Her back was so badly severed, along with a nasty cut above her temple, he insisted on tending to her right away even if he had to do it all himself. Most of the gang made their way upstairs with Silver to help tend to Cream as best they could, except for Tails, Blaze and - surprisingly enough – Sally, who waited with Sonic.

'What do we do?' Sally asked timidly.

'Clean up her wounds, bandage them. It's all we can do for now.' Tails shrugged.

'What do we do about Cream?' Blaze cocked a brow.

'Tikal and Shadow are onto it. She'll be ok.' Sonic stated bluntly, not taking his eyes off Amy for a second.

The other three exchanged short glances before getting to work, getting warm water and all sorts of creams and liquids to sooth the wounds before she woke up. They could only imagine how much pain she would be in if she were awake, but luckily she stayed asleep the whole time. Sally let out an exhausted sigh after wrapping her back up before turning to Sonic, noticing him still staring intently at the fuchsia hedgehog.

'We're going to go up and check on Cream.' Tails announced quietly.

'You guys will be ok?' Blaze added.

'We're fine.' Sonic stated bluntly.

Tails and Blaze exchanged a look with each other before shooting Sally a smile and made their way upstairs to the living room. The brunette chipmunk watched on until they were out of sight before turning back to Sonic, pulling up a chair and shuffling closer to him. They stayed silent for a comfortable moment or two before a small smile drifted across Sally's face, one Sonic couldn't leave unnoticed.

'What?' Sonic cocked a brow at her.

'You. You love her so much, but it takes something like this before you'll admit it.' Sally giggled a little.

'Wh-What? Sal, I think you-'

'Don't even try it, Sonic Hedgehog. I know you better than you know yourself.' Sally cut him off with a knowing look.

'Something I've always despised.' Sonic sighed through a smile.

'Go upstairs and get us a few drinks, check up on Cream. I'll be fine here.'

Sonic was a little hesitant to leave Amy, something he wasn't embarrassed to show now that he knew he couldn't convince Sally his feelings were otherwise than the truth. She gave him a smile as if to reassure him before he slowly made his way up the stairs, Sally watching behind him. She turned back to Amy and let out a sigh before taking her hand in both of hers. At the touch of their gloved hands, Amy's eyes began to flutter…

'Amy?' Sally questioned timidly.


	9. It's Always Been You

**Hey all!**

 **Here we are, the final chapter. I hope you've all enjoyed it! Be sure to read and review. Stay tuned for my next story, 'Tick Tock, Tick Tock'. A request sent in a few weeks ago which I'm about to get started! Enjoy!**

 **Ciao! xx**

* * *

The sunset sky looked more magical than ever, or maybe it just seemed that way because the gang didn't have even a second to stop and look at it. The pinks and oranges were hitting the horizon, the dark blue beginning to overcrowd its colours as a few stars began to come out. Cream was still lying on the lounge, her head propped up on a pillow as Silver and Cosmo sat by her side.

'It shouldn't be long now, right?' Cosmo questioned, mainly trying to reassure herself.

'Of course not, she's been out for hours. Any minute now.' Silver nodded.

'Is there anything we can do?' Bunnie asked, directing her question at Tails.

'No.' The kitsune sighed.

Everyone let out a collective sigh, filled with exhaustion and worry. Cosmo got to her feet to get a drink of water from the coffee table, taking a seat back down by Tails who couldn't help but notice her devastated expression, despite how hard she tried to hide it. It broke his heart to see her that way, he plucked up the courage to wrap an arm around her shoulders and pull her into his chest. He nuzzled into her hair as she buried her face in his chest, refusing to let any tears fall.

Everyone watched on at them for a few brief seconds before turning back to stare at their laps, their hope fading in the slightest. Antoine pulled his wife into his side, rocking her back and forth a little as if to sooth her. Sonic stood on the opposite side of the coffee table, his two siblings by his side before he pulled his sister into him as she buried her face into his shoulder, Manic on the other side of her and holding her from there.

Blaze sat down by Silver cautiously, not quite sure how to comfort him, it had never been her strong suit. His eyes didn't waver from the young rabbit for even a second, making the lavender feline even more worried before she laced her arms over his shoulders and leant against his back before he held onto her hands and squeezed them tight.

Rouge, Knuckles, Tikal and Shadow were all seated on the other lounge, staring into their laps. Tikal turned to look at the ebony and crimson hedgehog for just a second before she took his hand into hers and squeezed it, causing him to start caressing her hand with his thumb. Rouge saw this and couldn't supress the slightest smile before she exchanged a glance with Knuckles and rested on Knuckles' shoulder.

Everyone remained silent, only able to hear each other's breathing before they heard a breath hitch inside a throat, causing them all to snap up and turn their attention to Cream. She began breathing heavily, turning onto her back before beginning to moan painfully, her eyes slowly fluttering open as her hands came to her face.

'Cream? Cream are you awake?' Blaze whispered.

'How are you feeling, sweetie?' Sonia asked from where she stood.

'Argh, bucket…' Cream groaned before Sonic dashed out of the room.

'What?' Knuckles cocked a brow as he and Rouge got to their feet.

'Here!' Sonic exclaimed as he shoved a bucket by Cream's side.

They young rabbit began gagging before throwing up half her body weight into the bucket that the cobalt hero had returned with. Bunnie and Rouge helped sit her up, rubbing her back as she emptied her stomach. She was swaying from side to side, the effects of the electric shocks slowly wearing off on her brain. Bunnie rubbed her lower back gently before Cream winced in pain.

'Back…' Cream whispered before throwing up again.

'What is it, Sugar?' Bunnie asked as she unzipped Cream's dress.

'What is it, my love?' Antoine asked Bunnie.

'Oh my, Chaos.' Rouge winced at the sight of Cream's back.

.

As Amy squeezed her eyes closed and shifted her body a little, Sally stood up and leaned over the fuchsia hedgehog to make sure she wasn't seeing things. After a few more long seconds, Amy slowly opened her eyes groggily to look up at the brunette chipmunk with a blank expression. Sally let out an exasperated sigh of relief before sitting back down again and letting a smile cross her muzzle.

'What's going on? Where am I?' Amy questioned as she looked around.

'Back in the garage, it's probably somewhere between 7 and 8. Everyone is upstairs with Cream.' Sally informed her.

'Cream? What happened to Cream?' Amy questioned firmly as she tried to sit up.

'It's ok, she's fine. She was electrocuted but-'

'She what?!' Amy exclaimed, cutting Sally off and shooting into an upright position.

'Amy, everyone is upstairs with her. She's just fine.' Sally insisted, forcing her to lie back down.

The bubble gum heroine looked at her skeptically for a few seconds before consenting to lying down again. She couldn't hear anything coming from upstairs, which she figured was a good thing – or it could be a really bad thing. She tried to stop analysing it all so deeply, knowing the gang knew how to take care of Cream. Which then shifted her train of thought…

'Why are you down here, Sally?' Amy questioned boldly, momentarily forgetting their conversation in her living room.

'I don't know,' Sally began after a few seconds silence. 'I didn't want you to wake up alone, I figured you'd need a friend.'

'I see.' Amy responded absent-mindedly.

'I told the others I'd stay down here and wait, I can go-'

'No,' Amy cut her off, squeezing her new found friend's hand, 'thank you for staying.'

Sally smiled through a relieved sigh, squeezing Amy's weak hand in return with both of hers. They stared at each other for a few seconds, friendly and relieved smiles across their muzzles. Sally momentarily let go of the fuchsia hedgehog before standing up and pulling up the blanket over Amy, tucking her in before she sat down again.

'I'm going to go upstairs to get Sonic.' Sally smiled knowingly.

'Sonic?' Amy questioned as her eyes lit up.

'He's worried about you, very worried. I'll send him down.' Sally smiled again as she stood up to walk away.

'Sally,' Amy said abruptly as she gripped the chipmunk's hand and pulled her back, 'Thank you.'

'We'll have to finish off our dinner and wine night sometime soon.' Sally chuckled.

'I'll make desert and we'll watch sad chick flicks.'

'Deal!'

* * *

As Sally got to the top of the stairs, she noticed the rest of the gang standing around the long lounge, crowding over who she assumed was Cream. As she assumed her position next to Sonic and his siblings, she finally had a view of what was happening. The young rabbit was lying on her stomach, bucket by her side as she up chucked again, her back exposed.

'Holy shit.' Sally whispered to herself as she took in the sight of the horrific burns up and down her back.

'It's from the electrical currents mostly, a little from being slammed up against the wall.' Manic told her.

'They're going to take some time to heal, but with some rest and the right medicines, she'll be fine.' Tikal nodded reassuringly as she rubbed her own ointments into Cream's back, tears streaming down the young rabbit's face.

'Cream, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault.' Sonic bowed his head.

'No.' Cream sobbed before pulling herself together. 'I couldn't get it done in time, it's my own fault. Now Amy's downstairs still unconscious and-'

'No she's not, she's awake and fine.' Sally interjected, causing everyone to look at her.

'Probably more worried about you, kiddo.' Shadow chuckled to himself, smiling down at Cream.

'How is she?' Tails asked Sally.

'She really is fine, I actually came up here to get Sonic.'

As Sonic turned to face the brunette chipmunk, she gestured her head towards the stairs, suggesting the cobalt hero head downstairs and check on her… plus tell her all that Sally knew was inside Sonic's heart. The blue blur could see what she was saying, bowing his head as a blush crossed his face. He nudged the Princess friendly before slowly making his way downstairs, Sonia and Sally smiling as they watched him walk downstairs.

When he got to the bottom of the stairs, he found Amy lying on her side staring at her fingers that played timidly with the white sheets that surrounded her. She coughed a little, startling Sonic from the silence before he took a few steps forward that allowed her to notice him, causing her to smile at him as she tried to sit up a little.

'Hey, lie down, don't hurt yourself.' Sonic insisted as he almost rushed to the chair beside her.

'Sonic, I'm fine. What I'm really thinking about is how you're doing?' Amy cocked a brow as she finally sat herself up.

'Me? Now that I know you're up and smiling, I'm feeling much better.'

'Really? What about Sally?'

'Ames,' Sonic sighed bashfully, 'I was never going to choose who to save between you and Sally. However, that doesn't mean I wouldn't choose between you and anyone else outside a battle. Had it been Manic and Shadow in there, I wouldn't have chosen! Having said that, Shadow wouldn't let me.'

'You're probably right.' Amy giggled, causing Sonic to join in.

They shared a comfortable silence as Amy smiled and stared at her hero, Sonic still blushing with his head bowed and playing with his fingers. Amy reached forward and took one of his hands into her own, causing him to look up at her, a glistening hope and nervousness in his eyes. The bubble gum heroine couldn't help but giggle a little at him.

'I'll always choose you, Amy. It's always been you.' Sonic said nervously.

'Come here.' Amy whispered.

She smiled as she gently leaned forward, bring Sonic's face to hers as he gently placed a hand on her hip. They gently, coyly and undeniably locked lips slowly before deepening the kiss a little. Amy pulled away reluctantly to look into his eyes, a goofy smile drifting across his face which caused her to giggle before he kissed her cheek.

'Oh my, Chaos. Cream! I need to see her.' Amy insisted firmly as she rushed to get up.

'Way to kill the mood, Ames.' Sonic winked, grabbing her to slow her down.

'Very funny, now help me.' Amy smirked.

'Just slow down, don't hurt yourself!' Sonic laughed as he got her to her feet.

'Never thought I'd hear you say that.' Amy smirked.

Sonic chuckled through an eye roll as they slowly began heading towards the stairs, Amy holding onto his arm to steady herself. He helped her up the stairs, one arm wrapped around her with his hand resting on the small of her back with the other holding her hand gently to support her. When they got to the top of the stairs, everyone was sitting down again, Cream dozing off with her back still exposed.

'Wh-Wha… Cream!' Amy cried before pushing Sonic away and forcing herself to run to her side.

'Amy?' Cream whispered as her eyes opened.

'Your back! Are you ok? How- Why- What did you do Cream?! Are you crazy?!'

'Rose, stop.' Shadow instructed shyly, trying to pull her away.

'No!' Amy screeched as she batted him away, making everyone jump, 'Cream, why would you-'

'Amy! Calm down!' Cream snapped with all her energy, 'I'm fine, just a little burned and feeling a little queasy.'

'Are you sure you're ok?'

'Don't worry, Amy, I'll live.' Cream giggled, causing everyone to chuckle.

'It scares me how much you sound like Sonic right now.' Sonia winced slightly through a smile.

'Atta girl.' Sonic thrust his fist into the air.

'I'm glad, she's been sounding too much like Silver all night.' Blaze face palmed.

'So she should!' Silver insisted.

Everyone burst into fits of laughter, even Cream as she found enough energy to stay awake and laugh along with her friends. It didn't take much more time before Cosmo and Tikal got to making a lazy dinner for everyone, Manic and Knuckles debating over movies and everyone else making themselves comfortable around the room.

To no surprise, by the time the girls came back with food, Cream had finally dozed off to sleep. Bunnie, seated next to her at the time, stroked her hair and pecked her forehead in a motherly way before Antoine stepped in and took the young rabbit up to Sonic's unused bed to let her sleep throughout the night. When he got back, he sat by his wife, who had an emotional smile plastered across her face.

'What?' Antoine smiled as he pulled her into him.

'I think we could do it.' Bunnie whispered.

'Do what?'

'That! Have a baby. I mean, I know Cream isn't a baby but just imagine having someone to fall asleep on our couch and kissing them goodnight before-'

'I love it.' Antoine cut her off.

'Wh- Really, Sugar?' Bunnie smiled gleefully, a tear forming in her eye.

'Let's do it!'

As the two soon-to-be parents embraced in a firm embrace, Bunnie forcing herself to hold back her excited tears, the others got to eating and making themselves comfortable on the lounges as the movie slowly began. As Amy curled up next to Sonic, the cobalt hero turned his attention across the room sub-consciously to see a surprising yet happy sight. He nudged Amy, forcing her to look over at a certain two seated close together, talking, laughing ad undeniably flirting.

'So, how are you feeling?' Manic smiled bashfully at the brunette chipmunk.

'Just fine, actually. Really good. You?' Sally blushed as she looked up at the sap hedgehog.

'Never better.'

Sally bit down on her bottom lip to suppress a smile before she boldly rest her head on his shoulder. As she closed her eyes, a smile spreading across her muzzle, Manic blushed furiously before realising his little brother was looking at him. Sonic gave him a thumbs up and a wink as Amy smiled at him happily. Manic shook his head to break the gaze before wrapping his arm around the Princess, allowing him to slowly doze off as well.

It wasn't long before almost everyone was fast asleep, Rouge draped across a certain red echidna who held her firmly as he snored, Manic and Sally wrapped around each other at the other end of the couch to them. Tails and Cosmo in a similar position on the floor by Blaze and Silver who were using each other to keep upright.

Shadow was propping his head up with his hands on the ground, his chest rising and falling, along with Tikal's head who used his chest as a pillow. Sonia was asleep in a contorted position by them, probably going to wake up with a bad neck. The husband and wife of the planet were wrapped around each other on the other couch, smiling in their sleep.

'Everyone really is exhausted.' Amy smiled as he watched everyone from the balcony.

'Works well for me.' Sonic cocked his brows through a smile as he pulled Amy into him.

'You're terrible.' Amy laughed as they began to sway against the breeze.

Sonic rest his chin atop Amy's head, taking in the scent of her quills as he pulled her in close, avoiding the painful cuts and bruises on her back. Amy nuzzled into his chest, feeling his strong heartbeat pound against his ribs and vibrate through her ears. He pulled away from her slightly and a little reluctantly so he could look at her, a subconscious smile drifting across his muzzle.

'What?' She smiled.

'You're so beautiful.'

Before Amy had a chance to respond, he swooped in to kiss her. He began to pull her in more firmly by the small of her back as she snaked her arms up his chest and around his neck so she could lace her fingers through his quills. He tried to restrain himself, keeping calm and collected, but he couldn't. As the seconds went on, he deepened the kiss further and further, making them both smile.

'You're amazing.' Sonic chuckled as he pulled away before making his way along her cheeks and down her neck.

'Can't restrain yourself even in the slightest, can you?' Amy giggled.

'I can't say I wasn't trying.' Sonic smiled against the fur of her neck.

'You think we should go in and get some sleep?' Amy questioned as she brought his face to hers.

'Sure, I think we could both use it.' 

Amy smiled up at him before pecking his lips gently, almost teasingly, before taking his hand and leading into the lounge room where they curled up on one end of the lounge. Amy feel asleep almost as soon as she exhaled into Sonic's chest, the moonlight dancing off her facial features. The cobalt hero couldn't help but look down at her and smile, she was so beautiful.

'What took me so long?' Sonic chuckled to himself before he slowly dozed off as well.


End file.
